An inspector checks a horse for signs of soring during the Spring Fun Show in Shelbyville, Tenn. / Dipti Vaidya / File / The Tennessean

Written by

Duane W. Gang

The Tennessean

A leading Tennessee Walking Horse industry group sued the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Monday, contending that the government’s effort to impose minimum penalties for soring and abusing horses is unconstitutional.

Earlier this month, the USDA announced it would put in place a rule requiring organizations that inspect horses to assess minimum penalties to violators of the Horse Protection Act, the 1970 law that makes it illegal to show or transport a sored horse.

SHOW Inc., the Shelbyville-based horse industry organization, filed the lawsuit in the Northern District of Texas in Fort Worth, claiming that the new rules violate the constitutional right of trainers and owners to due process under the law.

The lawsuit seeks to prevent the USDA from putting the rule into effect July 9. Two other plaintiffs — Contender Farms and Mike McGartland, a Tarrant County, Texas, resident and owner and general partner with Contender Farms — joined in the lawsuit.

In a statement, SHOW said the new rules punish organizations that are working to change the Tennessee Walking Horse industry.

“Reformers within the walking show horse industry are committed to self-regulation as demonstrated by recent efforts, but the USDA’s regulations are not only unconstitutional, they unfairly punish those most aggressively working to clean up the industry,” SHOW President Stephen Mullins said in a statement.

Keith Dane, equine protection director for the Humane Society of the United States, slammed SHOW for filing the lawsuit.

“SHOW’s decision to file a lawsuit trying to block USDA’s efforts at reform says everything about whether this industry has the will or ability to clean up its act on its own,” he said by email.

USDA spokesman David Sacks said Monday that the department’s Office of General Counsel has received the lawsuit but declined to comment because it remains pending.

'Private tribunals'

Soring is the practice of using chemicals and other methods, including putting foreign objects in the horses’ hooves, to produce a higher gait. Dripping harsh chemicals on the horses’ front feet forces them, because of pain, to lift their legs higher. The walk is prized in walking horse competitions.

In announcing the new rules this month, the USDA said it will now require horses found in violation of the Horse Protection Act to be dismissed from the show. If a horse is sored, the new rule also will require those responsible for the soring to be suspended from participating in shows, exhibitions, sales or auctions. The length of the suspension would vary, depending on the number of prior violations.

The federal government has only enough funding to send its own inspectors to a small fraction of the more than 450 horse shows held across the nation each year. Instead, it relies on a form of industry self-regulation, with approved horse industry organizations conducting inspections.

USDA officials said that in the past some organizations have declined to issue penalties stiff enough to deter soring. With the new rule, the USDA said, competitors will know that inspections and enforcement will take place consistently at all shows.

SHOW, in its lawsuit, argues that the USDA can’t use the industry organizations to enforce federal laws without giving individuals proper due process.

The new rule does not give accused trainers or owners the right to appeal, according to the complaint. Using the organizations as “private tribunals” violates the Constitution by unlawfully giving judicial powers to private entities, the lawsuit contends.

SHOW and other industry groups have long cited a 98 percent compliance rate with the Horse Protection Act. But a recent analysis by The Tennessean showed a significant difference between the number of violations issued by the industry when USDA officials are present and when not.

When the USDA was present, horse industry inspectors found seven times as many violations of the Horse Protection Act.

SHOW cites efforts

SHOW officials say they should not be lumped in with other industry organizations. The group has said it is tougher than other horse industry organizations and points to efforts it has under way to cut down on horse soring.

For instance, a new swabbing program began June 15. The program uses sophisticated technology to test for chemicals and masking agents, such as drugs that numb pain, that might help disguise whether a horse is sored.

In a separate statement to The Tennessean, SHOW said what is important is not how people perceive the lawsuit but making sure horses are protected. SHOW said it supports consistent enforcement of federal law.

“It is not an issue of uniform penalties, as we would like the entire industry to adopt the strict rules SHOW has. The issue is forcing the industry to prosecute bad actors as if it was a court system, something that would hinder our ability to focus on real reform,” SHOW said in its statement.

The Walking Horse industry has struggled with soring for decades. It came back into the spotlight last month after an undercover video released by the Humane Society of the United States showed nationally known trainer Jackie McConnell soring and abusing horses at his Collierville farm. McConnell was indicted for his actions and pleaded guilty to felony conspiracy to violate the Horse Protection Act.